Pugilistica: The History of British Boxing, Volume 3 (of 3)

Between 1835 and 1863, British boxing underwent a transformation that would reshape the sport forever. This volume captures that volatile transition - from the bare-knuckle days of Bendigo to the gloved era inaugurated by the championship fight of December 1863. Miles meticulously documents the lives and careers of the men who defined this pivotal period: their brutal contests, their personal struggles, and the raw cultural forces that shaped their battles. What emerges is more than sports history. This is a window into Victorian England itself, where boxing served as a crucible for the era's tensions around class, masculinity, and honor. Fighters were folk heroes; the ring was a stage. Miles wrote as an insider, a man who understood the subculture from within, lending these pages an authenticity that later historians could only envy. For anyone curious about how modern boxing came to exist, or simply drawn to the texture of 19th-century British life, this volume preserves an irreplaceable record of blood, ambition, and the long road to the sport we recognize today.